Flawed Origins
by Myuki-chan
Summary: Vampire AU. Ishida Uryuu hates the Watch, an agreement between the shinigami and the Quincy, and will do everything he can to live by his own rules - Urahara Kisuke plans to make things difficult. However, the two must soon learn to work together. UraIshi
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Snow blanketed the town of Karakura. It had stopped falling earlier in the evening and now, at midnight, the clouds had begun to part, allowing the moon to cast an eerie glow on the surroundings.

By the local playground, the layer of white had been marred by footsteps and scuffles, trails leading back to the main roads where the cars had created a grey slush. The streets were empty now. The normally quiet town had been silenced further by the unexpected snowfall.

The park behind the playground was mostly untouched – no one had tried to cut a path along the trails and standing at the base of one presented a view of a flat powdered canvas stretching into the trees.

However…

A figure burst out onto one of the paths, creating an erratic trail behind him as he ran sluggishly through the snow. His breath curled into the air in heaving gasps as he strained to go faster, to distance himself from something, stumbling only to claw his way back to his feet.

The "something" trailed behind him leisurely, flickering in and out of the shadows and moonlight.

The man darted off into the trees, propelling himself forward by pushing off nearby trunks with his hands, ignoring the way the bark tore at the skin on his palms and fingers. Anything to just get him _away_.

The creature that followed him darted easily into the trees, weaving between them at a pace that rapidly brought it closer.

His hands were shredded badly; drops of blood coloured the snow as he ran.

The red appeared to drive the creature faster, its feet barely leaving a trace on the newly fallen snow.

The man suddenly tripped on a buried tree root and fell in an explosion of white powder.

A leap. A muffled shriek into the snow. Fangs shone in the moonlight before burying themselves into the man's neck.

The vampire fed.

The sound of a blade being drawn cut through the night air and the moment the vampire turned, a quick, precise motion brought the sword through its chest. The seconds ticked away before the creature burst into pieces of ash that floated away on a gust of wind. Some settled onto the snow nearby, only to vanish a moment after. The attacker crouched down beside the man laying unconscious on the ground and reached out a pale hand to turn him over. Two fingers pressed against his neck to search for a pulse, the skin wet and cold from the snow but still warm underneath.

"… still alive," he murmured in satisfaction before pulling out a small cell phone from his jacket pocket, dialing with the push of a button. "Request for 4th Division services of a victim in area 17. I will keep watch until your arrival."

Putting the phone away, he stood and surveyed the area. He'd been a little too slow in his pursuit – slightly faster and he wouldn't have had to call the 4th Division. Just a little flash from his memory alteration device would have been enough and then he could have moved on to other things, but this was how things had ended up and he was lucky the man hadn't been turned.

"I still don't understand how you can see while wearing those," a voice commented from behind him.

Turning, he sent the newcomer a lazy grin. "Why, Yoruichi-san, I had no idea you'd joined the 4th Division."

Shihouin Yoruichi smiled wryly back at him. "I haven't. I just happened to be with them when you made your call and thought I'd go on ahead to check on things, since I remembered you were doing your shinigami duty in area 17. They're on their way." She paused. "But really, are you sure those sunglasses aren't hindering your abilities? It's the middle of the night, Kisuke. Therefore, you know, _dark_."

"Ah, but you know as well as I do that the dark doesn't affect our vision," Urahara Kisuke replied, adjusting the sunglasses on his face with a smile.

"The dark, no, but I can't say the same for those," she pointed at his face, "considering I've never worn them at night."

"I assure you that my vision is fine."

"If you insist," Yoruichi replied. A flickering motion caught her eye and she turned to watch the arrival of two 4th Division shinigami with their medical packs strapped to their backs. They nodded to her and Urahara before approaching the man on the ground, reaching into their bags for various items. With Urahara's duty over, she started to walk away, motioning for her friend to follow.

"Yes, Yoruichi-san?" He fell into step beside her, their feet leaving no noticeable prints on the fresh snow they walked on.

"Well, since you insist on living here instead of Soul Society and no one else seems to bother to visit you, I felt it was my duty to remind you that it's your turn for the Watch starting tomorrow." She glanced over at him. "I'd hate for your charge to go and commit murder or get killed simply because you didn't know."

Urahara grinned, teeth shining in the moonlight. "It's been quiet for the past 17 years. I highly doubt anything interesting would happen if I wasn't around for a week or two. Nevertheless, thank you for reminding me and ruining my plans for a night on the town tomorrow evening."

"You're welcome," Yoruichi drawled. "I agree that it does seem rather pointless but there's always that factor of 'you never know'. Besides, think of it as a vacation of sorts."

"More like babysitting."

Stepping out of the park and back onto the main streets, they took to the rooftops in a synchronized leap that spoke of years of experience and companionship. They had met centuries ago in Soul Society and had formed the sort of friendship you only find once in a lifetime. For a few years, they had pursued a relationship, but had decided it was far easier to simply remain as good friends. Urahara had moved into the human world out of fascination and Yoruichi had taken it upon herself to become a mediator between him and Soul Society when needed. It was a setup that had been in place for over half a century now.

They touched down outside a worn-looking shop that was always closed to those who were not acquaintances with the owner. It belonged to Urahara. He strolled inside and shed his jacket to hang it on the wall, Yoruichi leaving hers on as she took a seat on the floor.

"Any news from Soul Society?" Urahara asked as he started to brew a pot of tea.

Yoruichi shrugged lightly. "Nothing of major importance. Byakuya's adopted sister is taking over your shinigami duties in the area while you do your Watch, but she's almost vice captain material so I'm not too concerned."

"Ah, Kuchiki Rukia-san." He nodded to himself. "She's very competent."

"Though…"

"What is it?"

"It's probably nothing but have you noticed lately that there seem to be more Hollow attacks than usual? Not an extreme amount, just… more."

Urahara fell silent as he considered this. Hollows were what the shinigami had taken to calling the rogue vampires who roamed Karakura town – the vampires who had chosen to attack humans for blood. They had no rules, no laws, only the gnawing hunger within themselves that they obeyed. It was their duty as shinigami to dispose of them before they could turn other humans into their kind, sending their spirits into the void to be judged. They also helped wandering spirits pass on to the void. Whether they were subsequently sent to heaven or hell was none of their concern.

"A few more, but the Hollows tend to come out in waves. There was another peak a few months ago, so I wouldn't worry too much about it."

Yoruichi frowned a little, before nodding in agreement. "You're right. I think I'm just expecting something to happen – it's odd having peace for so long, don't you think?"

"Perhaps," Urahara said, bringing over the teapot and two cups, "but would you rather have chaos?"

"I wouldn't but knowing you, I think you'd enjoy the excitement."

He laughed, spilling some tea on the table as he poured. "You know me too well, Yoruichi-san."

"I should hope so," she replied, picking up a cup.

"How is the supply at Soul Society?"

Yoruichi took a sip, mentally calculating the numbers. "There should be enough Pigeon Ruby to last us at least two more months. Mayuri's still trying to replicate it without success."

Urahara grinned, the lamplight gleaming on his fangs. "I'll start preparing for a new batch then."

He had created Pigeon Ruby back when he still lived in Soul Society. The drink had revolutionized the shinigami, removing the hunger for weeks at a time instead of relying solely on pure will power and animal blood.

Though they called themselves shinigami, they were still vampires.

They were vampires who had made a choice. Some found their way to Soul Society on their own, renouncing the act of drinking human blood, while others were recruited, their strong levels of reiatsu leading the shinigami to them before they awoke. The majority of shinigami were found this way, brought back to Soul Society for training before being released on duty. Those who refused to be taken when they were found were eliminated quickly.

"Wouldn't it make more sense to let Mayuri know how to make it? It's less of a hassle for you," Yoruichi noted, raising a slender eyebrow.

"Would you trust him not to put something else in the drink?" When there was no response, he nodded once. "And so I prove my point. Besides, I quite like the idea that you're all depending on me as your one supplier."

"Of course you do," she said in amusement.

"Oh," Urahara suddenly said after a sip from his cup, "do you remember the name of my Watch subject?"

Yoruichi glanced up at the ceiling thoughtfully. "Ah yes, Ishida Uryuu."

* * *

The Watch was a routine that had been implemented 17 years ago.

Long before the incident that brought on the Watch, the Quincy emerged into being. They destroyed the Hollows much like the shinigami but there was a fundamental difference that formed a rift between the two groups, one that only grew as time passed.

Though the shinigami sent Hollows' spirits on to be judged, the Quincy's arrows passed a cruel sentence on all of their victims, sending them directly to hell.

This was changing the balance the shinigami tried to uphold and in retaliation, they waged war on the Quincy. The battles were long and brutal, with high casualties for both groups. Eventually the war ended with a loss for the Quincy and a pact was formed where they would no longer actively seek out the Hollows, but would be allowed to attack in defence, and the shinigami would leave them in peace. It was called the Menos Agreement.

Roughly 65 years passed without incident before a startling piece of news came to the shinigami.

It appeared that one of the Quincy had attacked and killed a shinigami, only to disappear himself afterwards.

There was an uproar in Soul Society at this breach of the pact. The Quincy who had been living peacefully for so long struggled to find a way to appease the shinigami and prevent another war. And so the Watch was created. Every Quincy would have a shinigami assigned to their person, to track their movements and ensure another case of murder wouldn't happen again. A positive factor in this agreement for the Quincy was that the shinigami would typically handle any Hollows that came near them, thus enabling them to keep the balance while providing a source of protection.

Though the Watch was considered a crucial shinigami duty directly after the incident, time eased the tense nature for most. However, there were still a few who took their roles seriously.

Urahara Kisuke was _not_ one of them.

* * *

Urahara crouched on the roof of the building opposite that of Ishida Uryuu's apartment, yawning widely as he checked the time on his cell phone.

2:47 A.M.

He had sent the previous shinigami on Watch back to Soul Society almost three hours ago. He yawned again.

Most of the humans had grown to believe that the vampires never slept; this was only partially true. Though they were capable of going weeks at a time without sleep, a period of rest was always preferable. However, in this case, Urahara was yawning less out of fatigue and more out of boredom.

The level of reiatsu leaking from the third-floor apartment was low, implying Ishida was asleep.

From what Urahara had been told about this particular Quincy, Ishida ran on a fairly strict schedule. He went to college from eight in the morning until five in the afternoon, ate dinner, then studied until midnight or later. On the weekends, he worked then holed up in his apartment with the occasional shopping trip.

Overall, very boring.

Urahara stared down at the dark apartment and tried to remember what else he knew about the boy from his file.

20 years old; striving for medical school; raised by his mother and grandfather from a young age, due to his father's death; mother died of illness, grandfather died a few years ago from a Hollow attack; hates shinigami. He had a strange tendency to pop up around Hollows and eliminate them before his Watch arrived. However, he couldn't be accused of exactly hunting them down since no one had ever caught him doing so and his actions were considered legitimate cases of self-defence. The times his Watch tracked down the Hollow before him, Ishida would direct a glare in an oddly accurate direction, despite the fact that the shinigami were shielding their reiatsu, before leaving.

Speaking of the matter, Urahara began to wonder how Ishida managed to appear near the Hollows without his Watch noticing, considering they were supposed to watch his every move. Every case he had heard of involved the Quincy simply disappearing from his apartment, sending his Watcher running off to find him.

Propping his head up with a hand, Urahara tilted his head curiously at the apartment. Whatever it was the boy did, he was going to find out what it was. Though Ishida's past Watchers may have been shinigami that were competent enough, he had never had Urahara Kisuke following his trail.

* * *

Ishida Uryuu opened his eyes slowly and reached out for his glasses on the table beside him. Letting his vision adjust, he was careful to keep his reiatsu levels low as he stood and shuffled around his apartment in the dark. He could sense a Hollow in the distance but he had also felt the change in his Watcher a few hours ago – considering it was something he had had to deal with almost his entire life, he had grown fairly adept at tracing reiatsu signatures and levels.

He hated having someone tracking his every move. Though he understood the Watch's purpose and supposed necessity, that didn't mean he had to accept it. So Ishida did what he could to sneak around their rules and do things his own way.

Take killing Hollows for example.

It couldn't be expected that a mediocre shinigami would stay at full attention at all hours of the day when Watching a generally boring subject. Ishida decided to take advantage of that fact and kept note of his Watcher's level of reiatsu – lower ones generally meant they weren't paying attention or were even taking a nap. When that happened, he would just lower his own and slip through…

Reaching out his with senses, Ishida concentrated on the source he felt opposite his apartment. It was low, low enough that the shinigami probably wasn't dozing but dead asleep.

_Ridiculous_, Ishida thought as he stepped towards his door. _If they're sending these kinds of shinigami, why keep the Watch at all?_ Making a note of the Hollow's general location of reiatsu, he slipped out of his apartment and made his way towards the stairs.

* * *

Urahara raised an eyebrow as a slow grin stretched his mouth.

"Well, isn't this interesting," he murmured quietly.

He had lowered his own reiatsu levels just to stay as inconspicuous as possible when he had felt a disregardable blip from Ishida's apartment. Well, almost disregardable. He would have ignored it if he hadn't also felt the Hollow's presence to the north. The Quincy's levels were still low enough that someone who hadn't been paying full attention would have completely missed the slight change and the fact that the boy was now sneaking out the back exit.

Rising to his feet, Urahara placed a hand on the hilt of his sword. "How about we go intercept that Hollow and make a first impression on our Watch subject, Benihime?"

* * *

Keeping to the shadows, Ishida moved quickly towards the Hollow, the comforting feeling of his cross charm tapping his wrist as he ran. Suddenly, he felt the Hollow's reiatsu disappear and skidded to a halt. Ishida frowned in confusion, throwing out his senses for any trace of the creature or a shinigami who might have reached it before him; finding nothing, his brow furrowed deeper.

"Hollows don't just disappear," Ishida muttered in frustration.

"You're right. They don't."

The Quincy jerked his head in the direction of the voice, hand flying to his other wrist to grip the charm that hung there, ready to bring out his bow at a moment's notice. "Who are you?"

"The one who made the Hollow disappear," the male voice replied, obviously amused. "I must say I'm impressed, Ishida-san. Your reiatsu control is commendable as well as your tracking skills, however, I'd suggest you don't try sneaking out like this again." The voice paused. "At least, not on my Watch."

"Watch…" Ishida's eyes narrowed into a glare as he tried to trace the shinigami's position. "You're my Watcher."

"Indeed," he said cheerfully. "I doubt you'll be able to find me – I've had centuries to hone my abilities… and then there's the fact that I'm just ever so slightly better than most of my comrades. Now, I'm not particularly devoted to the whole 'rule' business but I don't think I could overlook it if you went and actively hunted down Hollows while on my Watch."

"You don't have any proof that that's what I was doing."

"True, I don't. Yet. So I suggest that you don't give me any proof, and I won't have to turn you in for breaking one of the fundamental policies of the Menos Agreement. Which, I assure you, wouldn't be pleasant for either of us."

"Are you threatening me?" Ishida asked incredulously, still straining to find some flicker of reiatsu in the area around him.

There was a soft chuckle. "Call it more of a friendly warning. Now I know you have a busy day of classes tomorrow, so why don't you head on home and we can just put this evening behind us, hmm?"

Gritting his teeth, the Quincy slowly turned around. "I won't be made your prisoner," he said sharply before starting back down the road to his apartment.

* * *

Urahara watched Ishida walk away sulkily and smiled in amusement. He hadn't had a Quincy be this entertaining in decades – most simply accepted the pact and lived by its rules.

Glancing down at his zanpakuto, Urahara's smile spread into a grin. "It looks like these next two weeks won't be as boring as I thought they would be, Benihime."

* * *

A/N: A new fic, hurray! XD Another AU... with vampires this time. I'm hoping I manage to complete this one too. Let me know what you all think! :)


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Urahara perched on top of a puddle-covered bench, idly watching the students pass by. Some glanced at him but most hurried past without a second thought, papers and textbooks held up to their faces. The university Ishida attended had a lovely landscape, though it was all rather drab at the moment.

It had rained a few nights ago, melting whatever remained of the snow from the week before into an ugly grey slush. Today was the last day of Urahara's Watch; at midnight another shinigami would come to replace him and he would be relieved from his usual duties for a week. He would have liked to say that Ishida had followed his warning that first day and had stopped trying to sneak past him. However, this hadn't been the case, much to his amusement. Urahara had no real intention to turn the Quincy in and besides, there usually hadn't been a Hollow in the area when Ishida tried to make his escape attempts – the shinigami suspected it was more a matter of principle and rebellion than anything else.

Urahara, however, continued to remain one step ahead of Ishida, much to the Quincy's obvious frustration. They still had not met face to face – the shinigami had always managed to stop Ishida in his tracks by disposing of the Hollow first or by issuing a disembodied but verbal warning from somewhere unseen. It wasn't that he wanted to stay mysterious. Urahara just considered it a challenge to remain invisible, one that was all too easy for him.

Hearing the faint buzz of the class bell coming from the building to his left, Urahara smoothly got to his feet and watched the students pour out its doors. Ishida had adapted quickly to having a more competent shinigami following him around campus – it had only taken him two days of dropping his reiatsu the moment he stepped out of the buildings to realize that this actually made him easier to locate. Instead, he had taken to keeping it level with those around him in an attempt to blend in with the crowd.

Theoretically, it should have worked. Even though Urahara had his reiatsu signature memorized, it would have been difficult to sort through the hundreds of students walking about at a time. However, Ishida failed to note, out of what Urahara assumed to be ignorance, that there was something about the Quincy that made them incredibly easy to locate when it came to vampires.

The smell of a Quincy's blood was amazingly potent, permeating through the skin, sweet and alluring as a mere hint of what its taste would be like. No remaining shinigami had ever tasted it, for even before the Menos Agreement had been created, the Quincy were still humans and therefore off-limits; but there were many who longed for the chance though they would never dare to act on it.

A faint hint of the smell wafted past Urahara on a breeze and he followed it dutifully, tracking Ishida as he made his way towards his next class.

* * *

_A quiet evening_, Urahara noted as he watched Ishida's shadow move across the curtains of his apartment as the Quincy prepared for bed. The lights blinked out and Urahara stretched lazily before sitting back on his heels. It had been a tiring two weeks, he had to admit, but far from boring as he had expected. There were only a few more hours remaining of his Watch, after which he would be free to return to his quiet little shop and get a night's rest. A faint sense of hunger had started to grow the past few days, so he would have to make sure to dose himself with a cup of Pigeon Ruby as well.

It had been interesting to learn more about Ishida than what he'd already read in his file - subtle things he'd gleaned from simple observation. The Quincy was the epitome of politeness: opening doors for others, running from the classroom to return an umbrella someone had left behind, and loaning his study notes to a few shy girls in his class. He was very intelligent, receiving a steady stream of 90-plus percentiles on the assignments and exams Urahara managed to catch a glimpse of. His schooling was supported entirely by a scholarship.

However, one thing that Urahara noticed the most was that Ishida tended to avoid being around others. He would take his lunch in a small, quiet café that required a ten minute walk to get to, guaranteeing a smaller number of fellow customers. And even then he would seclude himself at a corner table with a textbook.

Urahara wondered what was driving the Quincy towards a career in the medical profession. Was it similar to his own motivations as a scientist or something entirely different?

The Hollows had been oddly absent the past week. Urahara rubbed his chin thoughtfully, casting back to his conversation with Yoruichi. She had noticed more of them and yet he had only seen one the entire week – it was strange, but perhaps it had only been a peak in activity as he had thought.

A flare of reiatsu touched his senses and Urahara turned his head in the direction, eyebrows drawing together in concentration as he focused on it. A Hollow attack a few sectors away, from what he could tell, but he couldn't leave his Watch duty to go investigate. The shinigami on duty in the area would have to take care of it.

Resuming his Watch, Urahara felt several more flares of reiatsu, including the addition of a third signal that he could barely register as another shinigami. Frowning now, he turned to stare in the direction of the battle once again. What was going on? A Hollow shouldn't be that difficult to dispose of, especially not enough to warrant a second shinigami's help.

He considered leaving to check it out but glanced back at Ishida's apartment and hesitated. Normally, he could leave at moments during a Watch but this Quincy had turned out to be a very high maintenance subject. With a quiet sigh, he slouched back onto the rooftop, peering down at the dark windows.

Barely ten minutes had passed before he felt a familiar reiatsu signature approaching quickly. Urahara rose to his feet as Yoruichi sprinted towards him and frowned at the expression on her face.

"What is it, Yoruichi-san?"

"There's been an attack in area 17 and the results aren't good."

"Area 17? That's…"

Yoruichi nodded. "The sector where Kuchiki Rukia has taken over your duties. The Hollow that appeared was stronger than anything we've ever seen, Kisuke. A human boy was caught up in the chaos – he tried to stop it, the kid has guts – and Rukia turned him as a last resort to save him. The 4th Division are on their way to look at their injuries."

"And the Hollow?" Urahara asked.

"I've called for reinforcements," she replied, her face dark. "It's still on the loose. I came to ask for your help in the search."

Urahara turned to peer down at the dark apartment window, reaching up to run a hand through his hair. Would it really be all right for him to leave? There was less than one hour left in his Watch and surely Ishida would be able to handle any stray Hollows that appeared in the area. Besides, it probably wouldn't take long to hunt down this Hollow – the Quincy would be alone for fifteen minutes at the most.

"Let's go," he said, placing a hand on the hilt of his zanpakuto as he took to the air. He glanced at Yoruichi as she came up beside him. "Take me to where Kuchiki-san is first. I want to ask her and the boy a few things."

With a nod, she took the lead.

* * *

Ishida sat up in bed, frowning as he reached out with his senses. Something was off. Though he hadn't been able to literally sense his Watcher during the entire two weeks, there had still been that subconscious feeling of someone following him. But now, it almost felt like… he was alone.

Throwing aside the covers, he placed his glasses back on and grabbed the jacket hanging off the back of his desk chair. If his irritating Watcher had really disappeared, there was only one way to find out and it required a trip outside.

He slipped his shoes on and quietly left the apartment, wrapping his arms around himself as he stepped out into the cold night air. When there was no mocking voice telling him to go back to bed, Ishida glanced around at his surroundings then at his wrist watch: it was fifteen past eleven. The new Watch shift didn't start until midnight so he had forty-five minutes to take advantage of his new-found freedom. The Hollow he had sensed in the distance for the past half hour suddenly became very clear and a faint smile touched his lips. He hadn't been able to hunt one down in ages.

* * *

There was blood everywhere when Urahara arrived on the scene with Yoruichi. Ignoring the twinge of hunger, he stepped over to where Rukia and the boy were having their wounds tended.

The boy looked to be around the same age as Ishida, scowling as one of the shinigami bandaged his arm, and not nearly as concerned about his situation as Urahara thought he would be. He also looked awfully familiar.

"Your name?" Urahara asked.

"Kurosaki Ichigo. What's with the sunglasses?"

_Ah! Of course,_ he thought. _So this is Isshin's son._

Though most shinigami were recruited upon their death, on occasion, humans who lived with particularly high levels of reiatsu would be monitored on a weekly basis. Kurosaki Isshin was one of them and had managed to become good friends with Urahara over the years, accepting the fact that the man was a shinigami with ease. As an added perk, many of the Quincy learned of his association with the shinigami and from time to time, used Isshin as a sort of mediator.

Urahara often visited when he was off-duty and Isshin's children were at school, so he had only seen the odd picture of Ichigo. They had discussed what would happen in the case of Isshin's death but they'd never considered his son. Urahara wondered how he was going to take the news.

"Personal preference," he replied with a smile. "So I heard you tried to take on a Hollow by yourself, Kurosaki-san."

"Yeah, you heard that, huh?" Ichigo drawled, then jerked a thumb in Rukia's direction. "I couldn't really leave _her_ sorry self to bleed all over the place. I didn't know shinigami were so incompetent."

"Incompentent?" The tiny girl kicked him hard in the side, sending Ichigo toppling over. "Look here," Kuchiki Rukia snapped, blood - or what looked like it - smeared across her skin, "if I hadn't changed you, you'd be dead already."

Many humans thought otherwise, but vampires did in fact bleed. However, it all depended on what the vampire had eaten. In a shinigami's case, they bled out Pigeon Ruby which, though it wouldn't kill them, did weaken them.

"What the hell are you kicking me for? Yeah, and about that. _Thanks for asking_. What if I didn't want to be a vampire? Maybe I would have preferred just dying." Pushing himself back upright, he lightly prodded the wounds on his neck. "Are these holes going to disappear or am I stuck with them?"

Rukia fumed and unsteadily climbed to her feet, much to the dismay of the 4th Division shinigami who had been examining her injuries. "Well, you couldn't exactly answer when you were bleeding on the ground more than me, but I can always change your situation."

"He is right, Kuchiki-san."

The pair turned to look at Urahara in triumph and confusion.

"It's a rather serious offense to bite a human and even more to change them. The situation will go under review with the Gotei 13, however, given the circumstances, you probably won't have to worry too much." Urahara shoved his hands into his jacket pockets and frowned thoughtfully. "And with Kurosaki-san's family background, he may prove to be useful as a shinigami."

"What?" Ichigo blinked in confusion. "What does any of this have to do with my family?"

Urahara shook his head. "Later. Right now there's a more pressing matter since I can see you two will heal just fine. Kuchiki-san, tell me about the Hollow."

"It was fast." She licked her lips as she thought back to the encounter. "Much faster than anything I've ever seen. Its strength was on par with a vice-captain… or even a captain."

"I see," Urahara murmured, eyes unreadable behind the dark glasses. "What damage did you inflict?"

"A few major cuts but I don't know how fast it heals. In any case, it was bleeding when it left."

"Well then, I suppose we ought to stop it before it causes any more problems, don't you agree?" He glanced up as a group of ten shinigami arrived – presumably the reinforcements Yoruichi had called for – and turned to the 4th Division shinigami. "I suggest taking Kuchiki-san and Kurosaki-san back to Soul Society immediately for further recuperation and to report their account of the situation. Yoruichi-san, send your team out in pairs to all neighbouring sectors and tell them to work outward. Be on the lookout for trails of blood but focus more on tracking down a high level of reiatsu – though the Hollow may be fast, its injuries are probably slowing it down."

Yoruichi nodded and grinned at the waiting shinigami. "You heard the man, off you go!" She looked at Urahara. "What about you?"

"I'll head back in the direction of Ishida-san's apartment for my search and you can sweep the area after me. I can only hope he hasn't done something stupid in the time I've been absent," Urahara said before darting off with a burst of reiatsu.

"It's times like this that you can see the captain he used to be," Rukia mused as she watched Yoruichi vanish shortly after.

Ichigo blinked at her as the healers helped him to his feet. "Used to be? Who, the weird guy with the sunglasses? Was he fired?"

"No, he wasn't fired," she replied sternly with a roll of her eyes. "No one really knows why Urahara-san left, except maybe Yoruichi-san. He just packed up his things and started living out here one day." Her eyebrows drew together into a thoughtful frown. "And because of it, despite everything he's done and still does for us, we all treat him like he's in exile."

* * *

Urahara raced across the rooftops, his senses thrown out as far as possible, straining to find the Hollow's reiatsu. Simple logic told him that Ishida hadn't stayed in his apartment and he didn't want to risk the boy coming into contact with the strange Hollow, especially when it was already injured and as a result, probably more violent.

So concentrated on reaching the apartments, Urahara almost missed the spots of dark liquid that glittered black in the lamplight. Landing beside one with barely a sound, he touched a finger to the substance and lifted it into the light. The blood stained his fingertips red as he rubbed his thumb and forefinger together, thick in consistency. Urahara frowned as an unusual scent wafted from the blood – one that stirred memories from long ago. He reached into his jacket pocket and withdrew a slender vial, collecting blood from several of the spots before tucking it away.

Slowly realizing that the trail led in the direction of Ishida's apartment rather than away from it, Urahara cursed softly before darting off once more. He could feel a strange, muted reiatsu located in an area not too far from the building and discovered another reason why the Hollow had been so difficult to find. Unlike most Hollows who had little sense of their surroundings and who often projected their reiatsu at full blast, this one somehow knew how to shield its power to prevent detection.

Passing the apartment building, he caught Ishida's scent and followed it down the streets and into the park. Sliding around a bend of trees, he abruptly froze at the scene laid out before him.

Ishida stood calmly in the middle of the trail, hands relaxed by his sides, the lamps behind him sending his shadow stretching into the darkness. He faced the Hollow crouched a few meters away, its reiatsu levels wavering unsteadily.

There was the slight tensing of muscles from the vampire before it leapt and Urahara instantly reached for his zanpakuto, fully intending on disposing of it, but he froze again as a blast of reiatsu brushed against his skin. He stared in interest at the incorporeal bow that appeared in Ishida's hand and the arrow that the Quincy swiftly released: a glowing blue bolt of energy that slammed into the Hollow in mid-air and sent it careening backwards into the shadows, presumably blasted into ash.

Silence filled the night air as both shinigami and Quincy reached out with their senses for any remaining trace of the Hollow. There was nothing.

"You've impressed me yet again, Ishida-san," Urahara noted, slowly removing his hand from the hilt of his zanpakuto. And he was impressed. He found it a little odd that the Hollow was defeated so easily but perhaps Ishida was just more powerful than he had thought. He couldn't sense any remaining reiatsu so he relaxed slightly - but only just, remembering the conversation he'd had with Rukia.

Ishida spun around, startled, before recognition spread across his face. "_You_." In an instant he'd drawn his bow again, eyes narrowed into an infuriated glare.

Urahara scratched at his head thoughtfully as he looked down the edge of the blazing arrow aimed at him. "Well, this wasn't how I had expected things to turn out."

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kill you, _vampire_."

"For one thing, I'm a shinigami," he said pointedly. "Though yes, I suppose technically I am a vampire." When Ishida pulled the bow further back, Urahara grinned brightly and replied, "However, I suspect you desire legitimate reasons so I'll give you two. One would be the Menos Agreement."

The Quincy's expression remained stony. "Do you really think I care about that agreement or your Watch? I know you're not stupid enough to completely ignore what I've been trying to do the past two weeks – the past two years, really – especially since you decided to play around with me."

"You have a point."

"Then? What's your second reason?"

Urahara had actually been trying to think of a second reason during Ishida's response but somehow he thought "because I'm amazing" wouldn't cut it, when something from the darkness brushed the edge of his senses. He quickly turned his head towards it as if listening, holding his hand up to silence Ishida who had opened his mouth to demand a response. Remarkably, the Quincy complied, either because he had also felt the touch of reiatsu or because the change in Urahara's demeanour signalled that he was no longer playing around.

There were only a few seconds for Urahara to realize what was speeding towards them and react. Flashstepping towards Ishida, he shoved him to the ground as the Hollow hurtled past them.

* * *

Ishida had tracked the Hollow through a few side streets before its reiatsu signature had abruptly disappeared. Frowning, he had continued on in the general direction it had previously been before slowly realizing that it hadn't disappeared but had been lowered to an almost imperceptible level. His search suffered in speed as a result, the faint touch of reiatsu flickering in and out of his ability's range with every step. He must have wasted at least ten minutes before finally narrowing the location down to the park.

Preferring not to make a stupid mistake, Ishida had slowly approached the path that led into the park rather than rushing in. When the Hollow had come into view, he had been so focused on following its every move that he hadn't even noticed his Watcher arrive behind him. Not until after he had sent the Hollow flying into the darkness and the shinigami had spoken.

He had known nothing of what the man looked like – they'd never met face to face until now – but that voice with its infuriatingly amused lilt had been all too recognizable.

"_You_," he bit out harshly.

Despite how often he had stepped over the lines of the Menos Agreement, his pride as a Quincy had prevented him from breaking its central purpose of preventing one kind from killing the other. However, nothing had prevented him from threatening to break that agreement.

Ishida had always felt comforted by the bow in his hands, a weapon that was warm against his palms but deadly to those that hunted him. His grandfather had taught him everything he knew about the Quincy so he cherished his abilities as a sort of memorial to the man who had basically raised him alone. Ishida's decision to rebel against the Menos Agreement had come shortly after his grandfather had been attacked and killed by a Hollow.

If he couldn't depend on the shinigami to do their job in protecting the Quincy, he'd depend on himself and for the most part, he had been successful in doing so. Almost two years of side-stepping the shinigami sent to Watch him, two years of freedom from the cursed Agreement… until now. This shinigami who had always managed to stay two steps ahead of him.

If it wasn't for the way the shinigami's body seemed to stiffen and his attention pin-pointed on something distant, Ishida would have continued arguing. Though he prided himself in his abilities, as much as he may have hated to admit it, he knew his senses weren't as accurate as a shinigami's.

Ishida blinked as the man disappeared and the next thing he knew, he felt his shoulder slam painfully into the ground and a heavy weight pressed against him. Gritting his teeth, he shoved the shinigami off of him and struggled to sit up.

"What was that for?" he snapped.

Urahara didn't pay any attention to the indignant shout beside him, too intent on trying to locate where the Hollow had gone. He knew it hadn't gone far – not when there was Quincy prey so close by. Feeling a flicker of reiatsu to his left, he slowly reached for his zanpakuto.

"Quiet. It seems we still have company." He notched Benihime out of her hilt. "This Hollow is not like the others. It has a remarkable healing ability for it to appear in full health despite being severely injured less than 20 minutes ago, if the trail of blood was any indication."

"Wait, it's the same one? That's impossible."

"Nothing's impossible…" Urahara murmured quietly, rising to his feet.

Ishida frowned but climbed to his feet as well, finger hooked in the loop on his cross charm. "And what do you mean, 20 minutes ago?"

"Before I had to come resume my babysitting duties, since you seem so set on breaking the rules, I had gone to meet one of my fellow shinigami who had been badly injured by this very Hollow. Of course, not without dealing out some damage herself." Urahara scanned the trees carefully, hand resting on his hilt in a deceivingly calm manner. "I saw no trace of those injuries as it passed us."

"This thing isn't normal."

The shinigami smiled, a hint of his fangs glinting in the lamplight. "Well, none of us are very normal, are we?"

A flare of reiatsu was their only warning as the Hollow darted out of the trees once more, a feral grin stretching its mouth as it raced towards them.

Urahara swiftly drew his zanpakuto and leapt forward to meet the Hollow. "Awake, Benihime!"

It side-stepped the curve of the blade, swinging a hand with sharp nails towards the shinigami's face. Urahara was steadily pushed backward as he dodged the attacks, eyes following the quick movements while he attempted to determine an opening. Spotting one, he swung his zanpakuto once again and felt it hit bone. The blade was embedded in the Hollow's arm which had blocked the attack at the last moment but the vampire only grinned wildly at the injury before shoving Urahara away with a blast of reiatsu.

It continued toward Ishida who pulled back the charm loop, sending an arrow of reiatsu shooting towards the Hollow. His eyes widened as it dissipated the arrow with a swipe of its arm and jumped out of its path, rolling to his feet a short distance away.

"Ishida-san, duck!" Urahara called out from the air. "Sing, Benihime!"

The Quincy threw himself down onto the dirt path once again and felt the wave of reiatsu pass over his head and crash into the trees behind him, toppling several to the ground. Hearing the shinigami land beside him, he sat up. The Hollow was nowhere in sight but he could still feel its presence.

"Are you hurt?"

"No," Ishida replied. "What are we going to do about this thing?"

Urahara's eyes were unreadable behind his dark sunglasses as he stood to face the darkness. "We have to corner it somehow. Ishida-san, I need you to try to keep it contained to one area – just fire those arrows of yours as fast as possible. Do you think you can do that?"

"I'm not a child," he said coldly, "of course I can. But why should I listen to you?"

"Though you may hate to accept that I have more experience with Hollows than you, it is the truth," Urahara replied, glancing back at Ishida over his shoulder.

There was a moment of silence before Ishida snorted quietly.

"And what do you plan on doing while I'm making myself a target?"

"Don't worry about that." The shinigami paused. "Here it comes again."

In a blink, Urahara had disappeared and Ishida swiftly rose to his feet, bow drawn and ready. Closing his eyes, he concentrated on sensing the reiatsu, knowing that otherwise, he might start seeing things that weren't there; he didn't want to risk shooting at shadows if the Hollow came up behind him. There was a flare to his left and his eyes flew open, his hand releasing an arrow at the same instant. The Hollow dodged it easily, rapidly shortening the distance between them with each leap, and Ishida began the barrage of arrows in response, trying to keep it both at a distance and in the same area. It was less of a challenge keeping it in the same vicinity – the Hollow seemed determined to reach him and rip his throat out – and more keeping it a safe distance away.

As the Hollow inched closer with every arrow, Ishida began to wonder where his Watcher had gone. It had been ages since he'd been involved in a battle this intense and he felt his fingers begin to ache as their skin was rubbed raw. Did the shinigami plan on showing up any time soon or had he given up and taken the coward's way out by leaving him to fend for himself? It wouldn't be the first time that had happened in the history of the Menos Agreement. Ishida felt himself growing angry - what was the point of the Watch if his Watcher wouldn't even protect him in a legitimately dangerous situation – but suppressed it quickly, squeezing his eyes shut for a moment when he realized what he was thinking. He didn't need the help of any shinigami – especially this one. When he opened his eyes, he almost reeled back at the close proximity of the Hollow, the arm pulled back surely to hit him as it swung forward.

Suddenly, a shadow silently appeared behind the Hollow, dodging the arrows in sync, and a voice said, "Sing, Benihime."

The blast from the zanpakuto tore the Hollow apart, pieces drifting down in a shower of ash that vanished before it touched the ground.

"What took you so long?" Ishida tried to ask casually, failing to keep the irritation out of his voice.

A grin appeared on Urahara's face at the slip and he bowed his head slightly. "My apologies. However, we at least have a victory on our hands, wouldn't you agree?"

Snorting quietly, Ishida turned to leave and abruptly stopped in his tracks before he ran into the woman standing in his way. She raised a slender eyebrow at him as if in appraisal then lifted her gaze over his shoulder.

"Sorry I missed all of the fun, Kisuke. I got side-tracked by a different rogue Hollow on my way here." She planted her hands on her hips and tilted her head in Ishida's direction. "I take it this is your Watch subject?"

"Only for another ten minutes, unfortunately. Nonetheless, Ishida-san, this is my good friend and colleague, Shihouin Yoruichi," Urahara said cheerfully.

Though she was a shinigami like the rest of them, Ishida still had his manners and so he nodded at her politely.

Urahara frowned and scratched at his head thoughtfully before saying, "I haven't even introduced myself yet, have I? A bit of a shame seeing as our little partnership is already coming to an end." Shrugging, he smiled again. "My name is Urahara Kisuke. It was a pleasure keeping up with you."

"I don't care what your name is, you're just a vampire to me," Ishida snapped, then glanced at Yoruichi and mentally stammered to a stop when he remembered that the woman smiling politely at him was one of them, too.

Not offended in the least, Yoruichi grinned widely and held out one of her hands. "Nice to make your acquaintance, too!"

Ishida began to automatically reach out to shake the offered hand before freezing, a frustrated expression filling his features.

"Having a bit of a problem, Ishida-san? You've been so cold towards me… it's because she's a woman, isn't it?" Urahara winked at him. "I don't blame you – she's warmed me up plenty of times before."

Laughing, Yoruichi shook her head. "Oh, Kisuke…"

Turning a bright red, Ishida jerked his hand away. Glaring at the pair of them, he turned and stormed off in the direction of his apartment.

"Charming, isn't he?" Urahara remarked, head tilted as he watched Ishida walk down the path.

"Very," Yoruichi replied. Sensing the next Watcher flashstepping into the area, she smiled at Urahara. "At least you're done with babysitting, eh?"

The shinigami said nothing and only smiled in return as he continued watching the Quincy disappear down the road.

* * *

A/N: Oh my god, AN UPDATE. Sorry for taking so long, everyone. XD I had literally 95% of this chapter written for... months. And then my beta finally came and nudged me along. So yay, a chapter! Hopefully I don't take another 7 months to write the next chapter, haha. Thanks for reading!


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